Lindsey Graham may be tough to beat in 2014

Sen. Lindsey Graham might be less vulnerable in 2014 than his adversaries think.

Tagged by some in the tea party as insufficiently conservative, the South Carolina Republican has turned around his poll numbers. GOP outrage over his support for immigration reform and President Barack Obama’s judicial picks has waned. Would-be rivals seem to be running in the other direction.

Text Size

-

+

reset

Graham goes after Rice

Graham says would break tax pledge

And Graham scored a victory last week when U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice withdrew her name from consideration as a candidate for secretary of state. The senator had been one of her most outspoken critics.

“A feather in Sen. Graham’s hat,” said one Capitol Hill lobbyist. “He stood up, put up a principled fight … and now his position has been validated. This will register with GOP voters in the South. It was a smart fight to pick, and he won.”

Some say Graham’s media-savvy, deal-cutting approach to politics should serve as a model for national Republicans as they try to rebrand the party after its November thumping at the polls.

Graham, a two-term senator and former congressman, “has crossover appeal. He knows how to message and appeal to Democratic voters, even African-American voters,” said Glenn McCall, a Republican National Committeeman in South Carolina who served on Mitt Romney’s Black Leadership Council.

There’s still plenty of time, of course, for a strong primary challenger to emerge. But Graham, 57, has the benefit of having watched how some of his GOP colleagues, such as Sens. Orrin Hatch of Utah and John McCain of Arizona, beat back primary challenges from the right — and how others stumbled.

Tea party favorite Richard Mourdock knocked off Indiana Sen. Dick Lugar in the primary after the moderate six-term senator took heat for not living in the state for decades. Lugar, the former Foreign Relations Committee chairman, traveled the world but kept a low profile stateside, rarely giving floor speeches and appearing on the Sunday talk shows only eight times since 2010.

Graham appeared 47 times during the same period, according to a tally by Roll Call.

“I have a house in South Carolina. I show up a lot. I’m seen as somebody who takes care of the state as well as a national conservative. I think my national security profile has risen,” said Graham, a defense hawk who serves in the Air Force Reserve. “Generally speaking, the best thing I can do is to continue being me.”

Still, there is grist for a potential challenger. In recent years, Graham has crossed the aisle to vote for Obama’s presidential nominees and work on divisive issues like comprehensive immigration reform — moves that have infuriated tea party activists and prompted threats to take him on in 2014. The senator supported both of Obama’s Supreme Court nominees, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, breaking with most other Republicans.

And in the current fiscal-cliff debate, Graham has said he’s willing to violate Grover Norquist’s anti-tax pledge if it means extracting significant cuts to entitlement programs.

“I’ve had [a] pretty constant base of support that accepts me with warts and all,” Graham said.

For now, Palmetto State politicos are buzzing about GOP Gov. Nikki Haley as she considers a successor to Sen. Jim DeMint, the tea party senator who’s resigning to take the helm of The Heritage Foundation.

Readers' Comments (29)

He, he, wait until his state loses all those military contracts after we go over the cliff. The good people of South Carolina will be chasing Graham with pitchforks. And imagine what will happen when he tells them that he is planning to marry his boyfriend. That will be the spectacle to see. Way better than the 4th of July fireworks, LOL…

Rest in sure we will do our very best to let Lindsey Graham depart from his senator duties and as such free him to go fight in Afghanistans Helmand province.

That is the place he belongs. He is a "strong" patriot and he should not vaste his time getting contracts for the MIC.

This "leader" should show the armed forces his presence, not only as good inspiration to the ones he have no proplem to send to war but to set an example for the "elderly people"--> They CAN make a difference in the front line...Combat operationals are hardly 30 years old nowdays---> Someone like Lindsey Graham would be an inspiration to our armed forces at the front line! .........

Graham would be vulnerable in a GOP primary. With the Fiscal Cliff approaching, he is going to be making some tough votes soon. The Conservative wing of the party will be reminded of his past transgressions by that.

If a strong candidate with some backing from the Club for Growth and other groups gets in, he will be vulnerable. The other seat is up again in just two years, which provides some incentive to take on Graham instead. Plus there may be many candidates running against the new appointee.

If you look at the GOP senators running again, Graham is among the most moderate, so the Club for Growth and the other groups will need to target him, in order to have fundraising targets.

In the eager to modernise, Politico has made it harder to stay anonymous.

With "trust to politico". We should give them a great goodbye. Now they are "free" for their conformist cheerleaders & paying superpacs. All registered so they can sell the information. (this sells better as they can guide the result of any discussion--chicago ...which is what they think they sell.......

Roger Simon got high thoughts of himself, nothing wrong with that.

www.politico.com/reporters/rogersimon.html

As for this propaganda story;

Lindsay Graham is the manifestation of a Neocon---long loved by the "Democrats" at Politico for the easy superpac sale, his devoted support of the patriot act, NDAA, Drone war, and the bipartisan love for Machiavelli. (Democrats and Republicans love all those policies).

This will be the end for this site and for the GOP & Democratic party. I can not wait for the next Democratic primary "selection".

The damage which will be done before that scares me a little, but that will also be the enlightning spark for the masses....atleast that is what I "hope" for. ....Go "progressives", it is not like Obama is going to get reelected now is it?.

It is time to make some stands! I know it seems pathetic and insecure etc etc, when you were silence all these years, but next round the federal government will follow the exact same policies, but tradition says it will be done by an R President...........most likely Jim DeMint .....which whom the Herritage Foundation see as 100% conservative... and the kings at the GOP & Democratic party like........LOL ...I know--> these people actually put up "variables" for that, not knowing what the f....it means.

Enjoy the drones and the consequences they bring . Both parties hope it will be enough to get rid of more of the constitution & most important; civil liberties, while building up the power of the government (like this so called filibuster reform....51 vs 65 in the senate, or something, basically removing the importance of the Senate......I assume that is the next "Democratic" step. After all...Democrats (D&Rs) like more laws passed...get em done...fast, fast!, the more laws the better, the government takes care of us after all! --->more revenue to sell to the lobbyists and the "selective" winners in the corporate market.

Habeus corpus is already gone. Something so important for a society it is called "great writ" in every "developed" country! 800 years of western philosophy! Gone like a fart in the USA. .....all for drones, patriot act, torture, gitmo & illusion of safty. (no empire in the worlds history had the same militaristic power we have).

No worries though, the D&Rs media (superpac-money receivers) propaganda-machine will stay you tuned by "big headlines...like the long gone "fiscal clifff" . Krugman (been on the frontpage of huffington Romneypost for 6 months) . They will let you know that everything is fine!

Go dogmatic thinking.! That is what made the Nazies come to power, and that is what the D&Rs want.

It would be absolutely delightful if the AMERICAN Democrats would get a top line candidate to defeat this OLD AGING white Racists Senator. The South Carolinains need to bring their state into the 21st century. This guy is from the party of NO, THE Obstructionist, he needs to retire and let someone with a bright vision for America take over.

The last two Graham runs I voted for the conservative in the primary and Graham in the general election. With SC holding an open primary and DeMint backing Graham again this time around I don't see how he loses.

Of course, isn't that what all Republicans do just before it is time to run again, ala Hatch, they turn into what they never were before. If they want it, they can have it, what a way to live for the last part of your life, totally different personality! Change on a dime, hypocrites all of them. Come to think of it, isn't that the definition of "selling your soul" for the almighty dollar?